| Tales of the Sabine Borderlands: Early Louisiana and Texas Fiction by Théodore Pavie Contributor(s): Klier, Betje Black (Editor), Marsh, Anne C. (Translator), Stewart, Philip (Translator) |
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ISBN: 0890968543 ISBN-13: 9780890968543 Publisher: Texas A&M University Press OUR PRICE: $15.79 Product Type: Paperback - Other Formats Published: October 1998 Annotation: In 1830, eighteen-year-old Theodore Pavie traveled west on the Camino Real from Natchitoches, in the new state of Louisiana, to Nacogdoches, Texas, which remained under Mexican rule. After he returned to France, he wrote these four stories that are rich in the details of life he observed in the Louisiana-Texas border region. "Le Negre" depicts the internal dynamics of a Louisiana slave community in an elemental tale of good versus evil. Pavie contrasts the nobility of the tragic hero, once a tribal chief in Africa, with the inhumanity of his white overseer. "Le Lazo" is one of the first pieces of Texas or Western literature. It is an enigmatic blend of reportage and imagination reflecting the effects of the Fredonian Rebellion of 1827, the Spanish invasion of Mexico in 1829, and the passage of the Law of 6 April 1830. The fear inspired by Texas' unstable political situation in the 1820s drives the action of "The Bearskin", set in Lousiana's planter society. "El Capuchin" tells of a full-blooded Spaniard and his Creole wife who flee increasing political hostilities in Mexican Texas. Once east of the Sabine, a lonely planter (probably a remnant of the pirate Lafitte's band) and his concubine take the couple in and alter their fate. After Pavie's death in 1896, his works slipped into quiet oblivion until Betje Klier discovered his travel journal and letters.These treasures of ethnographic fiction and historical detail should interest folklorists, historians, anthropologists, and anyone else curious about early life and literature in the region. |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - Fiction | Short Stories (single Author) |
| Dewey: FIC |
| LCCN: 98-22081 |
| Series: Centennial Series of the Association of Former Students Texas A & M University (Paperback) |
| Physical Information: 0.42" H x 6.07" W x 8.98" (0.40 lbs) 128 pages |
| Themes: - Chronological Period - 1800-1850 - Cultural Region - South - Cultural Region - Western U.S. - Geographic Orientation - Texas - Geographic Orientation - Louisiana - Cultural Region - Deep South - Cultural Region - Mid-South - Cultural Region - Southeast U.S. |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: In February, 1830, eighteenyearold Th odore Pavie traveled west on the Camino Real from Natchitoches, in the new state of Louisiana, to Nacogdoches, Texas, which remained under Mexican rule. Events of his trip inspired him to write stories rich in details of the LouisianaTexas border region after he returned to France. "Le N gre" depicts the internal dynamics of a Louisiana slave community in an elemental tale of good versus evil. Pavie contrasts the nobility of the tragic hero, once a tribal chief in Africa, with the inhumanity of his white overseer. "Le Lazo" is one of the first pieces of Texas or Western literature. It is an enigmatic blend of reportage and imagination reflecting the effects of the Fredonian Rebellion of 1827, the Spanish invasion of Mexico in 1829, and the passage of the Law of 6 April 1830, which triggered the next phase of Anglo rebellion against Mexican authorities in Texas. The Mexican protagonist Antonio enters into conflict with the Creole commander of the presidio at Nacogdoches, Col. Jos de las Piedras. Both men pursue rosaryclutching Clara, who represents the vessel of the new era to come. Pavie brings to life a diverse and rapidly evolving society between Nacogdoches and Natchitoches. The fear inspired by Texas' unstable political situation in the 1820s drives the action of "The Bearskin," which takes place in Louisiana where shock waves are felt in the planter society. "El Cachupin" tells of the fullblooded Spaniard, Pepo, and his Creole wife, Jacinta, who had been successfully established in Texas, only to be chased across the Sabine by increasing political hostilities in Mexico. East of the river, a lonely planter (probably a remnant of the pirate Lafitte's band) and his concubine take them in and alter their fate. After Pavie's death in 1896, his works slipped into quiet oblivion until Betje Klier discovered his travel journal and letters in the late 1980s. Both Pavie and his modern biographereditor Klier work at the intersection of history and literature. Borderlands and Western historians, anthropologists, literati, and travelers will be interested in exploring these treasures of historical detail and early examples of American ethnographic fiction. |